Lexcel and Customer Service Reacceditation

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What better way to celebrate 190 years of the firm’s existence with recent reaccreditations for Lexcel and Customer Service Excellence.
The firm was subject to assessments for the reaccreditation of The Law Society Lexcel Standard and the Customer Service Excellence Award recently.
Adams Harrison Solicitors have now held the Lexcel accreditation for 25 years.  Lexcel is not an obligatory accreditation for firms of solicitors to hold.   It is a  mark of excellence if obtained.   It is a legal practice quality mark for client care, compliance and practice management.  In particular the following areas are assessed:
  • Client care
  • Risk management
  • People management
  • Structure and strategy
  • Financial management
  • Information management
  • File and case management
Adams Harrison Solicitors were one of the first firms to receive the Lexcel standard.   In this year’s reaccreditation our assessor made the following comments and observations:-
“…..the Practice should again be very highly commended for sustaining a very high level of compliance against the Lexcel standard”.   
“…..it remains very clear that compliance remains deeply embedded within the ethos and culture of the Practice”.
“….the firm remains an extremely well run, and extremely well managed Practice”.
The assessor commented that Adams Harrison should be highly commended for the on-going and very comprehensive staff training and communication that it has in place for cyber security, as well as the accreditation against the Cyber Essential Standard.
The assessor stated that the Practice showed significant emphasis and resources devoted to ensuring the wellbeing and mental health of its employees, including the availability of mental health first aiders.
The assessor stated that the firm continued to have very high standard in terms of training and development of its staff as well as on-going coaching, mentoring and support offered to all staff.
The assessor stated that there remained a very clear understanding from fee earners on all aspects of risk and that operational risk management was dealt with comprehensively and effectively.   He also stated that supervision was comprehensive and well embedded.
The assessor stated that it remained very clear that:
 “the Practice continues to place very significant emphasis on the levels of on-going client care which it provides and in the very great majority of instances it clearly does so…”    He commented on the low level of complaints and claims.   
Customer Service Excellence is not unique to the legal sector.   It is a National Quality Mark that seeks to recognise organisations that have a truly customer focused culture.   This was our 3 year assessment.   We obtained full compliance in all areas and “compliance plus” in a number of areas, also.
It was determined that Adams Harrison:
 “comfortably achieved the high standards necessary to continue to be accredited against the Customer Service Excellence Standard”.
The assessor stated that there was very clear evidence from the staff members that were interviewed that there was a desire to want to provide excellent customer service/client care.  The assessor stated that it was very clear that our staff were adept at effectively communicating with clients and managing their increased expectations.
The assessor stated that Adams Harrison puts Customer Service Excellence “at the heart of everything that they do”.

Restructuring strengthens Adams Harrison Residential and Commecial Property Department

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Restructuring strengthens Adams Harrison in Residential Conveyancing Department and Commercial Property / Company Commercial Department.

The partners are delighted to announce that Jack Stewart will become Head of the Residential Conveyancing Department with effect from 1st July 2024.

Jack joined the firm in 2016 and became a partner in 2023 and is known for his knowledge of residential conveyancing transactions and high levels of customer service.

Richard Booth, who will step down as Head of Residential Conveyancing on 30th June, will become Head of Company Commercial and Commercial Property Department, following the retirement of Rhodri Rees. Richard, who joined Adams Harrison in 2016, has been a partner since 2019, has an excellent reputation for his Commercial Property expertise and will also be able to offer his services for Company Commercial work. With the restructuring of the Residential Conveyancing and Commercial Departments Richard will be able to increase his portfolio of Commercial clients.

These changes form part of the firm’s long term strategy to establish themselves as the principal provider of legal services to both business and personal clients in the Haverhill, Saffron Walden and Sawston areas, both now and towards the future. We are your local firm with city expertise but high street pricing.

Adams Harrison 190th: Debs Toft’s Poem

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A lovely poem written by Debra Tofts. Debra is the receptionist / administration assistant based in our Sawston office.

Adams Harrison 190th Anniversary

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Adams Harrison 190th Anniversary Celebrations Announcement 1

Early Conciliation; If you are considering making a claim against your Employer read this

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  1. If you are thinking of making a claim against your Employer via an Employment Tribunal you must first of all complete an on line notification form to ACAS (Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service).
  2. Early Conciliation is not obligatory but the completion of a notification form is.
  3. It does not cost anything to submit the notification form, nor does the form require detailed information.
  4. It will not be possible to submit a claim to an Employment Tribunal without first obtaining from ACAS a certificate number after the submission of a notification form.
  5. You can find the online form here.
  6. ACAS can guide parties through the process but cannot give legal advice.
  7. We can assist you with conciliation, including an early evaluation of the merits of any purported claim and the likely value if successful.
  8. Contact us via our contact form, by sending an email to [email protected] or by calling your nearest office (numbers at the top of the page).

Family Procedure Rules Amendment April 2024

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With effect from 29th April 2024, the Family Procedure Rules have been amended to promote alternative methods of resolving financial and private children disputes, other than through the court.

The background to this piece of legislation is that there is considered scope to extend non-confrontational methods by asking the parties to more formally engage with such processes, rather than defaulting to using the court. The terminology in the Rules refers to “non-court dispute resolution” (NCDR), which in addition to mediation, includes arbitration, evaluation by a neutral third party (such as private Financial Dispute Resolution procedures) and collaborative law.

Until introduction of the new rules, it was possible for either party contemplating litigation through the family courts, to attend a consultation with an accredited mediator, this being the Mediation and Information Meeting (MIAM). In the event that a party did not wish to proceed with the voluntary procedure of full mediation, they could obtain a MIAM certificate and then apply to court for a determination of their case. Under the new rules, the certification criteria will be more stringent. Mediators will be required to inform their clients about the various NCDR options available with supporting documentation, to ensure they are fully informed.

Certain exemptions from the requirement to have an MIAM certificate will remain, allowing parties to proceed directly to court proceedings. These naturally include cases of domestic violence, though the terminology is broadened to ‘domestic abuse’ in line with the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. Furthermore, the court will accept such cases on the basis of the applicant’s ‘significant financial hardship’ as opposed to ‘unreasonable hardship.’

One of the key changes is that previously the court could adjourn court proceedings in order to explore non-court options with a view to settlement, if the parties were in agreement with this method. Instead, the court may now adjourn the proceedings, in order to encourage NCDR simply “where the timetabling allows sufficient time for these steps to be taken.” In other words, the parties need not be in agreement with an adjournment.

As a deterrent to parties failing to engage in NCDR without good reason, the new rules provide that there could be cost consequences, therefore moving away from the usual initial position of ‘no order as to costs.’

During the court process, it is now a requirement that parties must file and serve on eachother a new form, (FM5), within seven working days before the first hearing. The form specifically asks parties to indicate what type of NCDR they have attended and explain why that method of resolution was not suitable in their particular case, verified with a statement of truth.

The revised Family Procedure Rules should represent a significant departure from the former use of MIAM certificates, moving parties’ conversations towards out of court settlements where possible. The emphasis will be on parties making genuine, fully considered, early attempts to fairly resolve matters without resorting to court proceedings. Time will tell whether these measures have any significant impact on court backlogs and aid resolution of issues.

Josephine Duchenne is a solicitor specialising in Family Law.

Tanya See – change of name

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The partners at Adams Harrison are delighted to congratulate Tanya See on her recent marriage to Shane Norley.

With effect from 1st May Tanya will become Mrs Tanya Norley.

Joyful newlyweds in wedding attire beside classic car, outdoor wedding celebration, Adams Harrison.